


A Demon's Heart

by Polarissruler



Series: Demons [2]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Gen, Gray feels like shit, Insecurity, Platonic Hurt/Comfort, Post-War, Smoking (very slight), before 100 years quest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:55:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23598727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Polarissruler/pseuds/Polarissruler
Summary: The war had swept through the town, but it had endured. It was rebuilding. If only trust was as easy to restore...AKAAfter the conversation with Mira, Gray hoped he could sort his thoughts. A certain stupid Dragon Slayer found him before he had a chance.
Relationships: Natsu Dragneel & Gray Fullbuster
Series: Demons [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1698604
Kudos: 14
Collections: FandomWeekly (2019-2020) Writing Challenge on Dreamwidth





	A Demon's Heart

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, everybody! This fic was written for Fandomweekly at Dreamwidth. Some of you asked for a continuation of the Gray fic, so now you are going to get it! I hope you like it! It's a bit short, because I had a limit of 1K words, so the next piece will be a bit more expanded.

Gray threw the burning cigar on the ground and stomped it. He should not litter, but what was his minor piece of rubbish compared to the ruins around him? The sun rose lazily as if even it did not want to wake up. An endless night? Sounded acceptable to Gray - he would get time to sleep at some point. Straight home; it sounded nice when he had promised that to Mira and himself. Sleep sounded even better, but that night he would not get any. Why did he have to start the talk about demons?

He had spent another night walking around town to watch the destruction. Not that much time had passed since the war - three months, one week and five days. Gray remembered every second after the defeat of Acnologia. But Magnolia had survived. It was rebuilding, a brand-new building on every few streets. Only few places stood in ruins, one old restaurant blown by a magical blast from Zeref’s army being the one where Gray sat. That place used to be his favorite; a precious secret spot most people (including everybody in Fairy Tail) missed while speeding through town. Gray used to end there whenever he wanted to stay alone with his thoughts; even the rubble comforted him. Some things never changed.

If Gray had spent the whole night in thought, maybe he could spend the day, too. He picked up another cigar from the… Huh, when had he smoked through them all? Gray crumbled the box and threw it away - another block to build his dying empire of thrash. The whole town could move on after the war. Why then Gray wished he could stay in the same spot forever? Those battles had destroyed Gray’s body - but he had healed. His heart on the other side… Even now he could feel the darkness, feasting on his brain. Demons killed. Demons destroyed. Demons could not be trusted.

Noise - he needed to drown those harsh whispers. But noise implied people. Gray would not risk hurting them. “Find someone, who will always stay stronger than you,” Mira had said. Everyone in Fairy Tail would agree, but how could Gray go and ask them? How would he admit he did not trust himself enough, so they had to keep him in line? Forever?

Steps echoed behind Gray. Even if not as sharp as Natsu’s, a Demon Slayer’s ears heard better than any human. Speaking of him…

“Here you have been, huh?” Natsu’s voice still spoke loudly, despite the wizard’s shabbier appearance. His eyes looked ready to close. Rubbing them slowly, Natsu walked to Gray, trying his best to keep a straight line.

Gray jumped off, ready to run. Ever since the war ended, excuse after excuse had kept him away from Natsu. After Gray had almost killed him, had he any right to stand by his best friend’s side again? Natsu had no choice when his brother made him E.N.D.; Gray had willingly turned in a demon after he thought Juvia dead. If only connections were as easy to rebuild as a house…

“Hey!” Natsu ran after Gray. Gone was the energy of a Dragon Slayer; Natsu sometimes stopped to catch his breath. “Do not…” he huffed during one such moment, “dare run from me!” He tried running again, even slower. If Gray had not stopped every few minutes to check whether Natsu still chased him, he would have had no chance to reach him.

Natsu tripped and fell on the ground. A possible opening for Gray - as if! “Hey!” He ran to his best friend. “Are you all right?”

“Caught you,” said sluggishly Natsu when Gray tried to help him stand. “Will you now tell me why you are avoiding me so much? You disappear as soon as I enter Fairy Tail, you turn away if you see me in town. I even broke in your house tonight to check on you, but you weren’t there!”

‘I am sorry!’ ‘I almost killed you!’ ‘You must hate me, mustn’t you?’ ‘Just say you don’t want to see me ever again.’ A dark chain bound Gray’s tongue. “Maybe you deserve to lie on the ground, then.” Demons left everyone.

“You are not running again!” Even half-asleep, the Dragon Slayer could muster enough power to hold Gray by the ankle.

Gray tried to break free; Natsu held even tighter.

“Hey! I know you hate me, but I just want to say sorry! And it doesn’t fix that I almost killed you - I know you won’t forgive me that easily, but I need to say it out.” Natsu failed to hold his tears back. “And if you still avoid me after this, I understand! But I’ve been looking for you the whole night and…”

“Shut up!” Gray stomped on the ground. “You shouldn’t apologize! You didn’t know what would happen! But I knew the dangers of the demon and still let it possess me and I… I should apologize!”

“You don’t hate me?” Did the idiot hear only that part? “Ah, that’s a relief. Everybody’s been repeating you won’t blame me for this and that you know I’d never hurt you, but…” Natsu sighed out. “I hurt you. I fought to kill you. And I thought you’d hold it over my head forever.”

“You’re a real idiot.” Gray helped him stand up. “I hurt you! Zeref turned you into E.N.D., but I chose to be a demon. You should hate me.”

“I don’t. Are even, then? If you don’t hate me and I don’t hate you?”

Only Natsu could make things so simple. Gray looked to the horizon. The brilliant sun had risen. A new day had begun.

“I guess we are.” Gray let silence creep on them, unable to finish his request. ‘Hey, if I ever become a demon again, you should stop me.’ Not today. He wanted to keep his simple happiness for as long as possible.


End file.
